


Eyes Wide Shut

by juicytree21



Series: Things Aren't Always As They Seem [1]
Category: Left 4 Dead 2
Genre: Angst, Bisexuality, Fighting, Friends to Lovers, Hallucinations, Injury, M/M, Slow Burn, Zombies, broken ribs, not that much mention of them though, some rude language, sprained ankle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-05
Updated: 2016-11-07
Packaged: 2018-05-31 12:48:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 15,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6470536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/juicytree21/pseuds/juicytree21
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The survivors are dropped at an evacuation center near San Antonio, Texas but quickly discover Texas is devoid of the uninfected. The center is overrun and they decide to give up on finding help and set up in a small town to help nurse Nick back to health. Nick on the other hand realizes something is wrong with their entire situation</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first story on AO3 and I really hope you enjoy it. Criticism and advice is welcome.

“Alright alright alright! We’re gonna stroll across that bridge and the army’s gonna take care of us.” Coach said, hope filling his voice.

“Or, they’re gonna line us up against a wall and shoot us.” Nick replied sarcastically with a scowl on his face. Rochelle pushed past Nick and grabbed an assault rifle off of the table in front of him.

“Can’t you try being positive for once in your life Nick?” Rochelle growled.

“I tried it once. I got a rash.” She scoffed and threw a first aid kit at his face.

“Ow!”

Ellis pushed past Nick and Rochelle who were bickering and grabbed a shotgun off of the table.

“Oh hell yeah!” He whispered gleefully.

“Could you try being a little less creepy Overalls?” Nick remarked.

“I ain’t being creepy. This gun is just so beautiful. I think I might cry a little.” Nick rolled his eyes and shouldered his med pack.

“Let’s just get across this damn bridge.”

The four survivors left the safe room with their guns at the ready. When they noticed the span was raised, they relaxed a bit. They heard a muffled static noise and Ellis ran over to a corpse lying near the bridges controls. He leaned down to grab the radio off of the deceased soldiers hip and pressed the talk button.

“Hello there!” He heard a screech of static and a voice.

“Rescue 7? That’s coming from the bridge. Bridge, identify yourself.” Ellis got flustered and pressed the talk button again.

“Well shit I’m Ellis. I got Rochelle here with me, Coach and Nick.” He released the talk button and waited.

“Bridge, are you immune?” Ellis frowned.

“I ain’t sick!”

“Negative bridge. Are you immune? Have you encountered the infected?” He felt Nick tap his shoulder and he turned to see the con man giving him a concerned look. 

“We fought zombies, yeah.” He replied a second later.

“Rescue 7, are you equipped for carriers?” There was a crackle and another voice came through.

“Affirmative Papa Gator!” Rochelle leaned forward and snatched the remote.

“Carriers? What do they mean by carriers?” There was a crackle and the man’s voice spoke again.

“Bridge, we have pulled out of that sector. Your only remaining pickup is available on the other end of the bridge. Our last chopper is leaving in ten minutes. You need to lower the span and get across the bridge. God be with you.” The radio fell silent and Rochelle handed it back to him.

“God be with you too, sir.” Ellis replied, a solemn look on his face.

Coach walked past Ellis and put his hand on the lever. He turned back to his rag tag group and smiled weakly.

“Whatever happens out there, I just want to let y’all know it’s been one hell of a ride.” Nick groaned and cocked his magnum.

“Way to boost the morale, chief.” He mumbled before holstering his pistol and grabbing his AK-47.

“Let’s kick some ass!” Ellis cheered. Coach nodded and pulled the lever. 

They stood there and felt the ground shake from the spans being lowered.They winced every time they heard a bang. The last span finally fell and they were able to finally see the empty bridge, littered with abandoned cars and trucks.

“This is creepy.” Rochelle muttered as she fired a single bullet.

“What’d you do that for?” Nick hissed. She slapped a hand over his mouth and shushed him. It was eerily silent and they all noticed the absence of zombies on the bridge.

“Oh man! We got lucky!” Ellis crowed. Nick came up behind him and put his hand over his mouth. He leaned down and put his lips to Ellis’s ear.

“Shut. The. Fuck. Up!” He hissed, making goosebumps appear all over Ellis’s skin.

WRAHHHHHH! The asphalt beneath them rumbled as the horde began moving across the bridge.

“Aw shit. Ne’er mind!” Ellis grumbled raising his shotgun.

The group began running as 50 zombies attacked them at once. Rochelle was the first to get attacked by a special. She was protecting Coach when a smoker wrapped it’s long gray tongue around her midsection. She thrashed and screamed for help as the smoker attempted to pull her up to him. Ellis came by in time and slashed the monster’s tongue, almost sending Rochelle off the bridge’s rail. He pulled her up and called the others to follow him. He was running across the scaffolding that had been put there for construction. The path was clear and long, giving them time to catch their breath.

Coach was the next to fall. A hunter had snuck up next to them and pinned him face down on the ground. Rochelle swung her bat and the hunter flew off the bridge to the speeding, murky water below. They continued running forward and Ellis was watching their backs when they came to a hole in the bridge. Nick held his arm out to prevent the mechanic from crashing 30 feet to the ground below.

“Watch out dumbass. We gotta go down that.” He pointed to a piece of broken road leaning on a bus. They all sprinted down the makeshift ramp and hurried across the bus roof. Ellis jumped down first and a charger stormed him. He tried to dodge it but didn’t move fast enough. The charger wrapped it’s beefy arm around his waist and started slamming him onto the asphalt. Nick could hear the bones in the young man’s body popping and cracking as the charger slammed him over and over. He came up behind the beast and shot several rounds into its head. It fell over and Nick offered a hand up to Ellis.

“Oh man! I feel like shit!” He said rubbing his back. Nick reached into his pocket to pull out the last of his pain pills when he heard the crackle of gunfire somewhere ahead of them.

“TANK!” Coach shouted running backwards. Nick turned to look right as a blue sedan was thrown at him and Ellis. He tackled Ellis, moving them both out of the way of the incoming car. He felt the breeze from the car whizzing past them and took a deep breath. He looked down at the man under him and noticed the pained look on his face.

“Oh man, now I feel worse.” Nick handed him the pills and joined Rochelle and Coach in shooting the 20 foot monster. It roared in pain and reached down to grab a piece of rubble. It lifted the rock to throw and it screamed in fury. It chucked the rock past them and stumbled forward before falling on its face. They ran past the dead monster’s corpse and Rochelle pointed out the chain link borders that were several feet in front of them. 

“Look! The chopper!” They all cheered and continued sprinting towards the chopper ignoring the roar of a Tank behind them. They could feel the earth shaking beneath them and tried to ignore the fact that the beast was breathing down their necks.

“Die, you nasty son of a bitch!” Ellis was walking backwards while pumping the Tank full of lead. Nick grabbed Ellis’s upper arm and spun him around.

“Don’t stop running!” He shouted, not loosening his grip on the hick’s arm.

Coach and Rochelle were already on the helicopter, shooting at the Tank still following them. They ran up the ramp and sprinted across the helipad to the chopper. Nick shoved Ellis in front of him so he could run aboard. 

Before Nick could put a foot on the helicopter, he felt something snake around his waist. He looked down and saw a Smoker tongue wrapped around him. His eyes widened and he reached out for Ellis’s outstretched hand. His fingertips grazed Ellis’s as he was dragged backwards. He saw the chopper blades speed up as the pilot got ready to take off. 

“FUCK!” He shouted, struggling to free himself.

“Hold on Nick!” He looked up to see Ellis run out of the helicopter and leap off the helipad to chase after him. He was still fighting the smoker but the tongue constricted and he felt his chest tighten. He was gasping for air, his vision was fading, and he couldn’t get free. He could see Ellis and Coach shooting above him and the tongue was jerking and he felt his ribs crack. 

“Kill it!” He yelled, grimacing in pain. He felt the tongue shudder and he fell ten feet to the ground. He heard a snap and felt his ankle dislocate from its socket. He stood up and tried to see through the green smoke that surrounded him, He coughed and limped forward and felt someone put his arm over their shoulder.

“Overalls?” He mumbled, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his ankle and left side. 

“I got’chu Nick. We’re almost there. Stay awake.” He trudged forward as fast as he could and saw them approaching the chopper. His legs kept trying to give out underneath him and he groaned in agony and anger at himself for getting snatched and for not walking faster.

“Can’t walk. Too weak.” Nick mumbled before collapsing. He laid on the ground with his eyes closed hoping he’d just die right there. He’d never felt this awful in his 35 years. Not even when CJ Petersen had stabbed him when he was in the ninth grade. He felt a tug on his shirt and figured it was the zombies coming to tear him to shreds. He squeezed his eyes shut expecting horrible pain but was surprised when he felt someone slip an arm behind his shoulders and another arm under his knees. He opened his eyes halfway and saw Ellis struggling to carry him to the chopper. He felt himself being laid down on cold metal a few seconds later and passed out completely when he felt the helicopter lift off the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter sucks but the next one will be much better. At least Nick is awake

“Keep moving people. Don’t stop walking.” Ellis and Coach were carrying Nick and Rochelle was shooting dirty looks to the CEDA official who was waving them forward.

“We’re going as fast as we can, son.” Coach grumbled, heaving Nick up so his feet weren’t dragging anymore.

“Where are we? And where are you taking us exactly?” Rochelle asked. The man leading the four of them scowled and turned to face them.

“An evacuation center outside of San Antonio. You’ll be transported from here to our facility in Olympia, Washington.”

“Olympia?!” Ellis exclaimed. “That’s all the way across the damn country!” 

“Be quiet kid. We saved your asses already. Don’t push it.” Ellis bit his lip and turned his focus back to Nick who was moaning in pain.

They were led down a long hallway where a man in a hazmat suit was standing guard in front of a red door they’d become all too familiar with. He looked them over once and nodded for them to enter. They entered the room and immediately heard the door lock from the outside.

“How we sposed to fix Nick if we ain’t got a doctor or nuffin?” Ellis grumbled, lowering the older man to a lumpy mattress on the floor. Nick groaned again and the others frowned.

“Nothing we can do now. I’m gonna patch Nick up the best I can and we’re all gonna get a decent night’s sleep. Alright?” Ellis and Rochelle nodded and left Coach to help Nick.

Rochelle passed out the minute her head hit her pillow. Coach was asleep soon after her, his loud snores reverberating off the walls of the small room. Ellis was having a harder time falling asleep. He was watching Nick writhe in his sleep and occasionally asking for help. He knew the con man was having a nightmare but there wasn’t anything he could do. 

Instead he watched him. He watched him cry out a few times from thrashing and hurting his broken ribs. He watched him mumble about pills and ammo and how annoying they all were. He wasn’t surprised by most of it but he was surprised when Nick started gasping for air and clawing at his throat.

“Nick!” He said, shaking him. Nick took a deep breath and his eyes shot open. He tried to sit up but was winded when he felt his ribs shift.

“Fuck!” He whispered breathlessly. He moved slowly and sat himself up. He looked around the dimly lit room and his eyes finally landed on Ellis.

“Where the fuck are we, Overalls?” Ellis scooched closer and grinned.

“CEDA flew us to San Antonio. We’re in a evac center.” Nick groaned and rubbed his eyes.

“How long have we been here?” Ellis shrugged and stood up.

“We flew for a few hours and we been ‘ere about 4 hours. They said we’re headed to Olympia tomorrow.” 

“Olympia? Why Olym-” Nick was cut off by a screech from somewhere outside the room. The two men froze and Ellis crossed the room to the door. 

“Was that a Hunter?” Nick whispered.

“I think so.” Ellis whispered back.  
They sat in silence for a while listening for any signs of the Hunter. A few minutes went by before they heard the screech again.

“That’s definitely a Hunter. Why the fuck is there a Hunter in a CEDA facility?” Ellis shrugged and crossed the room to shake Rochelle.

“Ro! Wake up! Ro!” She groaned and rolled over with a scowl on her face.

“What is it Ellis? Did you have a nightmare?” He shook his head furiously and crossed the room to wake Coach.

“There’s a Hunter outside.” Nick said from across the room.

“A Hunter?” Coach mumbled groggily. Ellis nodded and began looking around the room.

“You two sure you’re not just hearing things?” Coach asked.

“Pretty sure.” Nick answered sarcastically. 

“You’re hearing things boys. Go to sl-”

RAWRRRR! The four of them froze and Nick rolled his eyes.

“Told you.” 

“How the hell did a Hunter get in here?” 

“I’m guessing San Antonio isn’t as infection free as they think.” Rochelle answered.

The three able bodied survivors walked over to the door and listened. They could hear it growling outside the room and they tensed.

“There is nothing in here we can use as a weapon.” Nick scoffed and they turned to look at the gambler who stuck his hands down his pants.

“Pretty sure your dick isn’t gonna do us much good.” Rochelle sniped. Nick rolled his eyes again and pulled out his magnum.

“You’re a regular comedian Rochelle. It’s called a thigh holster. Stuck it there before I even left the safe house.” Ellis grinned and reached out for it. Nick pulled it to his chest and shot Ellis a dirty look.

“Like I’m gonna let you touch my baby.” He said clutching the gun. He motioned Rochelle over and handed it to her.

“You’re a good shot. Don’t miss and don’t drop that gun. Or I’ll blow your fucking brains out. Got it?” She made a disgusted face and checked the cartridge. She smiled and cocked the gun.

“Fully loaded. Good job dickhead.” 

“No problem. Wait, what’d you just call me?” Ellis snickered and turned his attention back to the door. He turned the knob but the door wouldn’t budge.

“Those bastards barred it from the outside. Now what the hell do we do?” 

Ellis continued to push on the door, hoping it would budge. He could hear the bar on the door jiggling but there was no way it was going to move. 

“What about that door? Or did you three not see it?” Nick pointed at a bookshelf pushed against the wall and Ellis ran over to investigate. He pushed the shelf aside and saw a metal door with a window in it. He peered through the window but all he saw was darkness. He tried the door handle but the door was locked.

“It’s locked.” Nick motioned Ellis over and grabbed his arm.

“Help me over to the door.” Ellis frowned and lifted Nick up.

“Why?” Nick used his free hand to pull something that looked like a wallet out of his pocket.

“Lock picking kit. Never know when you’re gonna need one. Now bring me to the door, Cletus.” He helped Nick over to the door and sat him down on one of the chairs in the room.

“I reckon this used to be the health classroom.” Coach said, examining the posters on the walls. 

“My classroom used to be like this. One door was connected to the hall and the other was connected to the gym. I’m guessing that door you’re opening leads to the gym.” Nick nodded and opened his kit. He pulled out his tools and stuck them in the lock. He winced in pain every few seconds when he strained his left side but kept his focus on opening the door. 

Ellis was peering over Nick’s shoulder, watching him mess with the lock. He’d only ever seen people pick locks in the movies and this was extremely fascinating for him. 

“Could you stop breathing down my neck?” Nick grumbled. Ellis backed away a bit and smiled.

“How’d yew learn to do that?” 

“Practice.” 

“Can yew teach me how to do that?” Ellis asked hopefully.

“No.”

Nick listened carefully and grinned when he heard a click. He turned the knob and the door swung open. He heard Ellis gasp in surprise and felt proud of himself. He still had it.

“Awesome!” Ellis exclaimed before grabbing the lantern off the desk next to Nick.

“I know.” He replied with a smirk on his face.  
“Let’s go then.” Coach replied.

Ellis slid his arm back around Nick’s waist and hoisted him up. He waited for Rochelle and Coach to go ahead of them before they left the room. The light from the lantern wasn’t very bright but they could tell it was a gymnasium because of the slick hardwood floors and the gray bleachers that been pushed up against the wall. They continued forward and stopped when they saw a CEDA tent set up in the center of the gym. The tent had a streak of blood outside the entrance and Rochelle gulped loudly.

“What hell happened here?” She asked leaning down to examine the blood. 

“Is it new?” Ellis questioned. She looked at him and nodded solemnly.

RAWRRRR! The Hunter’s screech echoed through the gym.

“Oh shit. Where is it?” Rochelle whispered, raising the magnum. 

They heard another growl and before they could react, the hunter had pinned Rochelle.

“Ro!” Ellis cried. He set Nick down and ran over to her. Coach had already grabbed the gun and was shooting the hunter. The hunter keeled over and Ellis offered Rochelle his hand.

“Yew alright?” She nodded and touched the scratch the Hunter had left on her chest.

“I’m as alright as I’m gonna be. Let’s get out of here though. I’m sure the commotion has attracted more zombies.” Right as she finished, they heard the familiar roar of the horde. Ellis ran back to Nick and lifted him.

“We’re gonna have to run. Move as fast as yew can. Ok?” Nick nodded and stepped forward. 

Walking on his ankle was pure agony but he knew that if he stopped for even a second, he’d be dead meat. He felt his ankle popping as it threatened to dislocate again and he groaned. He saw Coach push open a door and saw the glow of streetlights outside.

“Come on boys!” Coach yelled as he started shooting behind them.

They sped up and Nick collapsed the minute they made it out of the gym. Coach and Rochelle shut the doors and pushed a dumpster in front of it. 

“That ain’t gonna hold them for long. Let’s get the hell out of here.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry nothing really happens. It's mostly a filler chapter. More stuff in chapter 4 though. Enjoy!

“Where the hell are we going exactly?” Nick grumbled. He was sitting in a nasty wheelchair they’d found overturned at a truck stop. There was something digging into his back and there were no rests for his feet.

“We’ll let you know when we get there.” Coach answered.

“Are we leaving San Antonio? Because I’m not sure I wanna stay here much longer. What with it being overrun and everything.” Rochelle slapped the back of Nick’s head and scoffed.

“We’re obviously leaving Nick. We’re just not sure where we’re headed.” 

“Well that’s reassuring.” Rochelle hit him again and he cursed under his breath.

“Do y’all think there’s zombies on the other side of the country?” Ellis piped up.

“Who knows? Probably though.” Rochelle said before patting his shoulder reassuringly.

They continued walking until they came to a sign directing them to the highway. It had been knocked over and there was blood on the ground near it. It looked like something had thrown someone against it. 

“We should head down the highway. It’s a fairly straight road that’ll take us far away far San Antonio.” Rochelle said, walking up the off ramp.

“We can’t go too far, baby girl. Nick ain’t gonna make it very far without actual medical care.” Coach said placing a gentle hand on her shoulder, stopping her in her place. 

“You’re saying that like I’m gonna die.” Nick paused before glaring at Coach. “I’m not gonna die, right?” Coach shook his head.

“You’re fine. But your ribs and ankle won’t heal unless you have time to rest. So I say we find some supplies and weapons, camp somewhere remote, and wait things out.” Nick shook his head and scowled.

“I’m not camping in this condition. We’re gonna find an actual house. Or something.” 

“Of course we ain’t actually campin’. Right Coach?” He shrugged and began walking up the off ramp.

“It all depends on what happens.” 

Ellis began pushing the wheelchair again but it was getting more difficult to steer. It was clear that the thing had been through alot and probably wouldn’t get them much further.

“Where’s the nearest town? I don’t think this wheelchair is gonna make it much further.” He pointed at the front wheels that were turning inwards and were clearly under a lot of strain. The seat itself had holes in it and Nick was almost falling through the chair.

“I can’t carry him very far if this thing breaks.” Coach grit his teeth and looked at the road signs.   
“We’ve already walked ten miles from that school. How much further do we have to go?” Nick grumbled. Ellis smirked and poked Nick in the shoulder.

“Yew didn’t walk. Remember?” 

“I’m still tired.” Coach ignored the two younger men and turned his attention back to the road signs.

“There’s a small town halfway between here and Houston. Schulenberg. My cousin lived there a few years ago.” Ellis grinned and began pushing Nick towards the highway.

“Well let’s go then.”

“We can’t, son. The town will be fairly empty but it’s still over a hundred miles away. It’ll take us three weeks to make it that far. Maybe longer with Nick in his condition. We’d need a car.” 

Ellis looked around and noted the empty highway. There were a few cars littered on the road but not any blocking their path. At least none that he could see. He noticed a station wagon that was parked in the middle of the road and ran towards it.

“Oh man. If I fixed this girl up, we’d be able to drive out of here.” He glanced up to see Rochelle pushing Nick and Coach watching her back, his baseball bat raised.

“I’d have to check under her hood though. Y’all don’t mind watching my back, right?” The three of them shook their heads and his grin grew even wider.

“Awesome. Gimme five minutes.”

Ellis popped the car’s hood and grinned. The battery was still connected to the alternator and the engine was in good condition. After inspecting the car for a few minutes his face fell and he groaned.

“Everythings fine but she’s low on antifreeze, oil, and she’s got an empty tank. And that truck stop is miles back.” He pulled his hat off and ran his hand through his matted curls. 

“Well Rochelle and I can trek 3 miles back and grab what you need. With Nick not slowing us down, it’ll take about 2 hours round trip. You two think you’ll be ok here alone?” Ellis nodded but Nick was shaking his head violently.

“No way. You’re NOT leaving me alone with him.” Coach smirked and patted Nick’s shoulder.

“Boy, you don’t have a choice.” Nick squinted and growled.

“Fuck you.” He inhaled sharply and glared at Ellis.

“If you talk about Keith at all, I’ll kill you.” Ellis climbed up on the hood of the car and smiled.

“Did I ever tell yew about that one time when me and my Keith went roller skating? Well we was supposed to bring roller skates but Keith brought ice skates instead. Man, he looked like an idiot on the rink. He was scratching up the floors and grinning the whole time.” Nick covered his ears and groaned.

“Shut up!”

“Then the manager came out and started yelling his head off at Keith. Keith got scared and tried to run but he fell and broke his leg. He had to wear a cast on his right leg for like three months.” Ellis finished his story and leaned back on the windshield.

“Your friend Keith is a fucking moron. I hope you know that.” Ellis frowned and shook his head.

“He ain’t too dumb. He got a 2400 on his SAT’s.” Nick gaped at him.

“A perfect score? You’re lying.” Ellis shook his head.

“I ain’t lyin’. He did better than anyone else did. He could’a gone to any college he wanted.” 

“Why didn’t he?” Ellis shrugged.  
“Don’t know. He never told me. I think he stayed because of his girlfriend.”   
Nick shook his head and rolled himself over to the car door. He pulled the handle and the door opened. He leaned in and lifted the visor to see if the keys were there.   
“Ellis, where are the keys? They aren’t in the visor.” Ellis frowned and hopped off the hood. He peered in the car and sighed.   
“I don’t know. I saw them in the visor.” He turned to face Nick and was met with a glare.  
“You don’t have the keys?” Ellis pouted and fell to his knees to look under the car. His hand searched blindly and frowned when he came up empty handed.  
“Oops.”   
“Oops? OOPS?! How the fuck are we gonna drive with no keys?!”   
“They were in the visor.”   
Nick pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. He thought about asking God to strike Ellis down but he wasn’t religious so that wouldn’t work. If he had his gun on him, he’d have probably shot him already.   
‘ _If you wanted to kill him, you would have done it a long time ago._ ’ He ignored the nagging voice at the back of his head and instead turned his attention back to Ellis.

“Can you hotwire?” Ellis shrugged.

“Keith showed me once. I probably could.” 

“Good. Now get out of my face. I’m exhausted.” Ellis frowned and climbed on the hood of the car again.

Nick opened the door to the backseat and climbed in. There was a sleeping bag in the back that he used as a blanket and laid down. His left side was killing him but he had given up his last pills 15 hours before. 

“Hey Nick.” He looked up and saw Ellis poking his head in through the open window.  
“What?” 

“I’m gonna check these other cars for stuff. Alright?” Nick frowned and looked at the other cars on the road. Most of them were totaled or overturned. 

“These cars are fucked up. You’re probably not going to find much. Plus it’s not a good idea to search these cars without backup.” 

“Yew worried about me, Nick?” Ellis asked with a mischievous grin on his face.

“Of course not.” Nick’s voice wavered slightly. He hoped Ellis hadn’t heard it but he looked up to see the mechanic grinning at him.

“I hate you, Ellis.”

“Well I still like you, Nick.” He turned away and walked across the road to an overturned truck. Nick groaned and laid back down.

Nick woke up to voices talking loudly outside. He sat up and saw Coach and Rochelle arguing with each other. Rochelle was shaking her fist at him and Coach looked like he was trying his hardest to not scream at her. Nick pushed the sleeping bag off of him and opened the car door. His shitty wheelchair was waiting outside for him but he just ignored it and climbed out. He stood and felt his ankle pop. He grimaced but continued to limp around to the front of the car.

“What’s going on?” They stopped arguing and turned to look at him.

“You shouldn’t be walking Nick.” Rochelle muttered before stomping away. Coach frowned and crossed his arms.

“Why aren’t you in your chair?” Nick turned up his nose and rolled his eyes.

“Why were you two fighting?”   
“It’s nothing Nick. I asked you a question though, son. Why aren’t you in your chair?”

“Because that thing's a piece of shit. Speaking of piece’s of shit, where’s Overall’s?” Coach shook his head turned to point at a car down the road. 

“He’s siphoning gas. We found the motor oil and antifreeze but there wasn’t any gas. We had to bring back a tube and a gas can instead. Poor kid’s mouth is probably burning by now. That’s the third car he’s taken gas from.” Nick turned away and limped back to his awful wheelchair and sat down. He started rolling and slowly made his way over to Ellis who was leaning next to a gas can.

“Hey.” Ellis looked up and smiled.

“Mornin’! Did yew sleep good?” Nick shrugged and crossed his arms.

“How much gas do you have?” Ellis shook the can and smiled.

“About seven gallons. I’m aimin’ for 10. She don’t need that many but there ain’t no harm in having extra.” 

“How many does it need exactly?” 

“About 5 gallons to get us to Schulenberg.” Nick nodded and turned his chair around.

“Well hurry up. I want to get the hell out of San Antonio.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long since I last uploaded.

“What do you mean I can’t drive?! Why can’t I drive?” Ellis yelled. He was standing next to the driver’s side and glaring at Rochelle.

“Ellis, honey, you haven’t slept in over 24 hours. You’re exhausted. Trust me.” He frowned and sighed.

“But I wanna drive. I’m a real good driver!” He insisted. She placed a hand on his shoulder and shot him a tense smile.

“I know you are. But we can’t risk you falling asleep at the wheel and killing us all.” He sighed and nodded in defeat. 

“Alright. I’ll sit in the backseat with Nick.” 

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Who said I’m sitting in the back?” Coach stepped in front of Nick’s wheelchair and glared at him.

“I did. Now get in the back.” Nick scoffed and leaned forward to open the backseat. 

“I’m only sitting back here because I want to. Just so you know.” Nick said to nobody in particular.

Rochelle waited for Ellis to hotwire the car before she climbed behind the steering wheel. Coach climbed in next to her while Ellis trudged to the back of the car. He climbed in next to Nick and crossed his arms. Nick could see he was pouting and rolled his eyes.

“You know, she’ll probably stop treating you like a child when you stop acting like one.” Nick whispered.

“I ain’t acting a kid. I just wanted to drive the damn car.” 

“I understand that. But she’s got a point, Fireball. You look exhausted. You got bags under your eyes.” Ellis rubbed his eyes.

“I feel fine. I don’t even feel tired.” Nick chuckled.

“That’s what exhaustion will do to you. You’ll be yawning in no time.” Ellis shook his head and leaned back.

Nick watched Ellis out the corner of his eye for a few minutes before he saw him stifle a yawn. After he yawned once, he couldn’t stop. He was yawning every few seconds and Nick could see his eyes welling. 

Eventually the hick covered his hat with his eyes and was asleep in a few minutes. Nick smiled cockily and crossed his arms.

“Told you.” He mumbled, before closing his own eyes.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nick awoke to Ellis leaning against the window and snoring. The sun was in the middle of the sky and Rochelle and Coach were driving in uncomfortable silence. He leaned forward and looked at the road ahead.

“How many zombies have you seen so far?” 

“None. It’s actually kinda freaking me out.” Rochelle said. She pressed on the gas and the car accelerated.

“You guys wanna explain what the hell you were fighting about back in San Antonio?” 

“It was nothing Nick. Just a disagreement.” Coach replied. Nick stared at the two of them and squinted suspiciously.

“Yeah, right.” 

He sat back and stared out his window. The lack of zombies was strange. If San Antonio was overrun, why were there no zombies here? He frowned and turned to look out Ellis’s window. There were virtually no cars on the road either.

“Anyone else curious why there’s no zombies or cars anywhere?” 

“I’m not sure. We saw a few cars piled up about ten miles back but that’s it.” Coach answered.

“How far until we reach Schulenburg?” Rochelle pointed to a sign and smiled.

“We’re already here. Finally!” Her cheer rang throughout the car, waking Ellis.

“Where are we?” Ellis asked through a stifled yawn.

“Schulenburg.” Nick mumbled, still looking out the window. He felt Ellis lean into to him to look out his window. Nick rolled his eyes and shoved Ellis away.

“What’re yew lookin’ at?” Ellis leaned against him again and he rolled his eyes.

“There aren’t any zombies here. Or cars. It’s weird.” Ellis frowned and sat back.

“Boys! Look!” Rochelle pointed out her windshield excitedly. 

Nick saw the big, white building she was pointing at. The building was elegant with gold gargoyles on the corners of the building. The wide wooden doors in front of the building were propped open with small blocks.

“Is that a mansion?” Ellis asked.

“No. It’s the town hall, dumbass.” 

“Why’s the door open?” Rochelle shrugged and pulled into a parking spot in front of the building.

“I don’t know. We’re gonna look around though.” She unlocked the doors and Coach and Ellis climbed out after her. Nick frowned and tried to open his door but she placed her hand on the window, stopping him.

“What the hell, Rochelle?” He snapped.

“I don’t think so, Nick! You’re staying in the damn car. We’re not looking out for you and risking our own asses because you’re stubborn.” Rochelle shouted with a stern look on her face.

“Fine! I’ll stay in the fucking car. But you better not take forever.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Ok, we’re gonna split. I’ll take the third floor, Ro can take the second, and Coach can take the first. Sound good?” Ellis said with a smile.

“I’m not sure splitting up is such a good idea, son.”

“We’ll all be fine, Coach. It’ll take 15 minutes, tops!” Coach frowned before nodding.

“Ok, but I better see both your asses back here in 15 minutes.” Rochelle waved him off and headed down the hallway.

“Come on, Ellis. We’ve gotta find the stairs”

The two of them wandered around the first floor until they found a door marked ‘Stairs’. Ellis escorted Rochelle to the second floor before heading to the third floor on his own. 

He pushed open the door leading to the third floor and was greeted by stacks of wooden boxes. Most of them had the word ‘Food’ on them but some said ‘Supplies‘. He unsheathed the machete on his hip and pried one of the food crates open. 

“Oh hell yeah!” Ellis whispered loudly. The crate was filled to the brim with boxes of fudge Pop Tarts. 

“We're gonna be eatin’ like kings.” 

Ellis spent the next ten minutes piling boxes onto a dolly cart. He carefully made his way to the stairs, making sure to keep one hand on the crates. He bumped the door to the stairs open with his hip and slowly made his way to the first floor. 

He found Coach and Rochelle in the main lobby with their hands full. Rochelle had a garbage bag swung over one shoulder and one at her feet. Coach was holding something that looked like an industrial microwave. 

“Ellis! What'd you find?” Coach asked when he saw Ellis appear with his find. 

“Some good food and some other crap I thought we could use.” He patted the top of the crate and grinned. 

“I found some clothes and water. And some food. Coach found a solar powered generator. Whoever was holed up here was extremely prepared. I hope nothing bad happened to them.” Ellis smiled and began walking towards the open door they'd come in through. 

“Well we're gonna need this more than them.”  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
“That was quick. What the hell did you guys find?” Nick asked when Ellis popped the back of the car open. 

“It looked like some people were there or somethin’. We found a bunch of boxes of food and shit. Coach even found a solar powered generator.” Nick frowned and turned to look at Rochelle who was nearly stacking everything in the car.

“I wonder who was here. And where the hell they went. I haven't seen a single living creature yet. Not even a fly. It's weird. Almost like we're in a dead zone or something.”

“Let's just count our blessings, Nick and find a place to hunker down for the next few days.” 

“Ok. I just hope we don't have to stay here too long.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this is so late and so short! I really wanted to work on this story but I had no inspiration and I had such bad writers block. Next chapter will hopefully be better and up sooner than this one

“This is perfect! Not a damn zombie in sight!” Coach crowed.

“Nobody else finds this mildly disturbing. We were almost killed in San Antonio but there isn’t a single zombie here?” Nick asked. Ellis punched his arm and grinned.

“Count your blessings! We’ve found paradise!” Ellis plopped down on the couch and smiled.

They were standing in the living room of a colonial style house. The house was beautifully decorated and completely spotless. It looked like a house from a home style living magazine. 

At least that’s what Nick thought. Their whole situation smelled fishy to him. Everything seemed perfect. He was suspicious. He wasn’t sure if someone was following them or monitoring them but he felt like he was constantly being watched. He glanced around the room quickly, scanning for cameras.

“Why are you so jumpy?” Ellis aid coming up behind him. Nick jumped and growled at Ellis.

“I’m not jumpy!” He snapped.

“Hey what’s the matter? You ok?” Nick shrugged and walked away from the mechanic. He left the living room and limped down the hallway away from the others. As he walked, he noticed a large family portrait hanging on the wall. He looked closer at the picture and frowned. The youngest child in the picture was wearing a clown costume. 

“What the hell?” He whispered. He glanced closer at the picture and suddenly the boy was dressed in a regular suit. He jumped at the sudden change in the picture and frowned.

_“Oh jeez, Nick! Wake up!”_ He looked away from the picture and looked around for the source of Ellis’s voice. The voice echoed in his ears but didn’t seem to come from anywhere in particular.

“You ok, Nick?” Rochelle said from behind him. He jumped for the millionth time and turned to look at the woman with a frown on his face.

“You’re acting really strange. You know that right?” He shook his head and limped back towards the living room.

“No. Something is really wrong. But I don’t know what.” \-------------------------------

Nick laid on the couch staring up at the ceiling. The others had all picked their own rooms but he was anxious to leave the living room. He knew he was worrying the others because of their occasional glances at him when they thought he wasn’t looking.

“Why’re yew still up?” He looked up and Ellis was standing next to the couch. His hair was free from his baseball cap for the first time and he looked exhausted.

“Why are YOU still up?” Nick retorted. Ellis shrugged and gently moved Nick’s feet so he could sit on the couch. 

“I had a nightmare.” Ellis mumbled, embarrassed. Nick sat up and moved his legs so he could sit closer to Ellis.

“What happened?” Nick asked, quietly. Ellis glanced at him, thinking Nick was using this as an excuse to insult him. He was surprised to see only genuine concern etched on his face.

“I was watching my mama get ripped to shreds by a hunter. Again.” He said choking back tears.

“Your mom died?” Nick asked. Ellis nodded sadly and blinked back tears. 

“I was tryin’ to get her out the house but she kept going back in for pictures and knick knacks and shit. Eventually she went in and didn’t come back out. I found her heart ripped out of her chest. It was halfway across the room from her body. I didn’t even have time to bury her. I had to leave her in the middle of the living room floor.” He broke down into a shaky sob and Nick pulled him in for a hug.

“Shit. I’m so sorry, Ellis.” He rubbed his back reassuringly and waited until Ellis’s shoulders stopped shaking.

“I’ve never lost anyone close to me before. I’m sorry I can’t sympathize with you, Fireball.” He whispered. Ellis pulled away and smiled weakly.

“It’s ok, Nick. I’m just glad I could talk to someone about it. Y’all are always shutting me up before I can finish saying nothin’.” 

“Sorry about that. Most of the shit that comes out of your mouth is some stupid story about Keith.” Ellis laughed.

“I’m fine. How’s your ankle?” Nick rotated his ankle slowly and winced when it had almost fully turned.

“Feels like shit.” Ellis lifted the corner of Nick’s shirt to get a look at his ribs.

“You trying to get fresh with me, Overalls?” Nick remarked. Ellis blushed and shook his head furiously.

“I’m jus’ checkin’ your ribs is all. How are they?” 

“They also feel like shit. Nothing I can’t handle though. How are you? That charger did a number on you the other day.” Ellis traced a large bruise on his chest and winced.

“I’m doing better than yew. That’s for sure.” Nick placed a finger on the deep purple bruise stretching across Ellis’s chest and frowned.

“I don’t know buddy. We might be in the same boat.” 

Ellis’s skin warmed at Nick’s touch and his heart fluttered. He gulped audibly and shot up from his seat. Nick shot him a confused look and raised his brow.

“You ok?” 

“I’m fine! I’m just tired! Goodnight!” He practically ran out of the room and left Nick very confused at what the hell just happened.


	6. Chapter 6

Nick awoke to chatter coming from the kitchen. The smell of coffee and toaster pastries wafted through the air. He sat up and groaned when he felt his ribs pull. The chatter in the kitchen stopped for a second before Ellis popped his head into the living room.

“Mornin’ Nick! Want some coffee?” Nick nodded and grabbed his shirt off of the coffee table. He was buttoning it up when Ellis entered the room with a mug and a plate. 

“Pop-Tarts and coffee.” He placed them on the table in front of him and crossed his arms.

“Yew want powdered creamer or sugar or somethin’?” Ellis asked.

“No. I like my coffee black.” He took a swig of the drink and grimaced. It was the most bitter coffee he’d ever had the displeasure of drinking.

“Oh this is awful!” He choked out. He put the mug down and wiped his tongue off on his sleeve. Ellis snickered and Nick shot him a dirty look.

“I think I’ll take that cream and sugar.” 

“Sure thing.” 

Nick picked up the toaster pastry and took a small bite off of the corner of it. It wasn’t terrible so he took a bigger bite. By the time Ellis came back with the cream and sugar, Nick had devoured both of his pastries.

“Man! Yew must have been real hungry! I was only gone a minute.” He handed Nick the cream and sugar and a balled up piece of cloth. Nick looked at him confused.

“What’s this?” 

“A clean shirt. Trust me, yew need one.” Nick nodded and placed it off to the side. He glanced up at Ellis who looked bored..

“You can sit down if you want.” Ellis walked around the coffee table and sat down on the edge of the couch. They sat in silence until finally Ellis cleared his throat.

“Who were yew talking to last night, Nick?” Nick raised his eyebrow and scoffed.

“You’re joking right?” Ellis shot him a worried glance and nodded. “I was talking to you, Ellis. We talked about your mom’s death. Remember?” 

“My ma ain’t dead! Who the hell told yew that?” He asked angrily.

“You told me! Last night!” Their shouting drew Coach and Rochelle into the living room.

“What the hell is going on?” Rochelle shouted. Ellis backed away from Nick and crossed the room to stand at her side.

“Nick said my ma was dead!” Rochelle looked at Nick with disgust and anger on her face.

“What kind of sick joke is that? That shit isn’t funny, Nick!” He threw his hands up in distress and groaned.

“I wasn’t joking. He came in here last night. He talked about how his mom was killed and then he got all twitchy and ran out of the room!” Rochelle looked at Ellis and frowned.

“Ignore him, Ellis. He’s got a sick sense of humor.” The three of them left the room leaving Nick sitting there dumbfounded.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nick was still going over in his head what had happened earlier. Nothing that had been happening the last few days made sense. Changing pictures, empty towns, fake conversations. He felt like he was going insane. 

“Hey, Nick.” He turned to look at Ellis who was entering the room with a grin on his face.

“I’m sorry about earlier. I think I got my dream mixed up with reality. I didn’t mean to insult you like that.” Ellis looked at him confused.

“What the hell are yew talking about, Nick?” 

“Earlier when I said your mom was dead and she isn’t. I’m sorry.” 

“Is this a joke? I told you my ma was dead. Are you ok?” Nick groaned and buried his face in his hands.

“Oh my God! What’s wrong with me?” Ellis sat next to him and frowned.

“What are yew yammering about?” Nick felt like ripping his hair out.

“Your mom is dead right?” Ellis nodded and Nick sighed.

“Something is wrong with me. I don’t know what but...something’s really wrong.”

Ellis patted his knee reassuringly and Nick sighed. His head was spinning. Ellis’ mom isn’t dead one minute and then she’s dead the next. He could feel a migraine building in his temples and he closed his eyes. When he opened them, Ellis was standing. He had his arms crossed and he was clearly worried about Nick. 

“Why don’t yew take a nap? I’m gonna go talk to Rochelle.” Nick nodded and laid back on the soft pillows. He could feel his thoughts getting foggy and he tried to push back sleep but his tiredness was too much and he fell back into his own mind.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decide to edit this chapter because the original was AWFUL! Still a huge thanks to thatwriterlady for beta'ing and writing part of this chapter. Chapter eight will be up later today as an apology for making you all wait so long for me to re-upload this chapter

“Is your head that bad?” Rochelle whispered softly. Nick nodded and she placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“I’m heading out with Coach later to look for some medical supplies. I’ll try to find you some Tylenol.” He heard her footsteps retreat and sighed. 

At least an hour passed before he heard Coach and Rochelle leave. He knew it wouldn’t be much longer after they left before Ellis would bug him. The younger man had been trying to cure his headache all week. He’d suggested a dozen or more remedies to cure him. Nothing had worked but that didn’t stop him from trying to help.

“Good afternoon, Nick!” Ellis crowed. 

“Shut up. Please just...shut the fuck up.” Nick mumbled. He glanced up the man who was looking down at him with pity. 

“I’m sorry, Nick. I forgot.” He whispered. Ellis crouched down next to him and placed his hand on his forehead.

“Yew could still take a cold shower. The generator is finally working so we’ve got water. Yew should take one. Yew ain’t smelling as nice as yew did when we first met.” Nick raised his brow.

“And how nice did I smell when you first met me, Overalls?” Ellis blushed and stood up quickly.

“I’m gonna get some food.” He practically ran out of the room leaving Nick with a satisfied grin on his face.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Ellis returned to the living room 15 minutes later with two steaming hot mugs of coffee and a sleeve of graham crackers. Nick made a face and Ellis chuckled.

“It ain’t much but it’ll fill yew up.” He handed Nick the crackers and placed the mugs on the table. The two of them sat together in silence until Nick cleared his throat.

"So tell me, Overalls, aside from your crazy stories about Keith, why don't you tell me what life was like for you before..." Nick motioned vaguely towards the outside. Ellis seemed to understand though.

"Like, what life was like?" Ellis asked.

"Yeah. What did you do for fun? Where did you hang out when you weren't off watching Keith trying to kill himself?" Nick joked. Ellis snickered and shrugged.

"I dunno. I guess..." Ellis looked up shyly at Nick for a moment before dropping his gaze back to the mug in his hands. "I liked to listen to music and...I played guitar. Sometimes I played at local bars and festivals. It was sort of cathartic."

Nick huffed out a laugh. "Cathartic? Big word there, El." Ellis shot him a look of reproach before frowning down at his coffee.

"I ain't as dumb as you think I am, you know."

Nick felt a bit guilty seeing the kid upset, mostly because he had caused it. He bumped Ellis' shoulder lightly.

"Hey, kid. I didn't mean anything by it. So tell me, what kind of music did you play? Country? My guess is country."

"No, not really. I mean, sometimes people requested it, but mostly I played rock. I miss playing." Ellis' voice was wistful. 

"What's your favorite song then? What song would earn you a standing ovation when you played it?" Nick asked. Ellis had to think about that one.

"One Bad Man."

Nick cocked one eyebrow and pursed his lips almost as if disgusted. "Isn’t that the Midnight Riders?"

"I like them." Ellis said defensively.

"Don't get me wrong, rock is good. Give me some Zep, some Floyd, some AC/DC, but I hate the Midnight Riders.” Nick shook his head. Nope, in his book, they sucked.

"I can play them other songs too. I can play anything, by ear too." Ellis stiffened and Nick could tell he’d offended him. He patted Ellis’ knee and he felt the kid relax.

"Well, Overalls, if we ever come across a guitar that works, I'm going to hold you to that." Nick said.

"I can do it too." Ellis sounded ready to rise to that challenge.

"What else did you do besides play guitar? You have a girl back home?" Nick sipped at his coffee, feeling the aching in his head releasing its death grip just a bit.

Ellis blushed and dropped his eyes again to the mug. "I did, sort of. But she liked Keith better. And I was ok with that. I weren't into her the way she wanted me to be."

"So...you weren't getting your groove on, Overalls?" Nick teased. 

Ellis' cheeks reddened. "I ain't no virgin, if that's what you're getting at."

“I’m not saying anything.” Nick said throwing his hands up in mock surrender.

“She just...wasn’t my type.” Ellis said, suddenly interested in a loose string hanging off of his shirt.

“What was wrong with her then? Too many missing teeth? Tits weren’t big enough?” Ellis shook his head.

“Nah. She was beautiful. She just wasn’t…Keith.” He mumbled the last part so Nick was almost positive he’d heard him wrong. But judging by the look on the kid’s face, he hadn’t.

“Oh! So you’re gay?” Nick asked calmly. 

“No. I just ain’t only interested in girls.”

“That’s…fine

“Ro said the same thing. Coach don’t seem too bothered by it either.”

“I’m the last to find out? I’m offended, Fireball.” Ellis blushed and picked up his now empty mug.

“Well, I thought yew’d be a dick about it. Yew’re kind of an asshole, Nick.” 

“I’m not an asshole. I just have strong opinions. Also, you’re an idiot if you had a crush on _Keith_. I mean seriously. I could understand that Zoey chick but _Keith_.” Ellis scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“Go take a shower, Nick. Yew still ain’t smelling too nice.”


	8. Chapter 8

Nick felt like crying from relief after his shower. The pressure in his head lifted greatly, leaving him with a dull ache behind his eyes. He also smelled a million times better than he had before and he was grateful for Ellis and Coach working for a day on the damn generator.

He quickly dried off and went to stand in front of the mirror. He cleared the fog and looked at his chest. Deep scars and scratches littered his torso. The deep bruise on his left side was yellowing around the edges and it was nowhere near as painful as it had been. He broke away from the mirror and picked up his clothes.

The white shirt Ellis had given him a few days before was rancid and his suit pants were black at the ankles from dried blood. He grimaced and balled the pants up. He left the bathroom with his towel around his waist and the disgusting clothes in his hands.

“Ellis?” He called out, entering the kitchen.

“Yeah, Nick?” Ellis popped his head out of the pantry and froze when he saw Nick.

“Where the hell do I put these?” He held out the clothes and Ellis shrugged.

“The laundry room’s there.” He pointed across the room to a metal door. Nick nodded and crossed the room to open the door.

The washer was tucked back against the far wall and the dryer was closer to the door, leaving plenty of room for someone to move around. He limped over to the hamper next to the washer and chucked his clothes in. He left the room and saw Ellis was still in the pantry rummaging around the shelves, occasionally stealing glances at Nick.

“Are you gonna stand there pretending not to stare at me or are you gonna tell me where the extra clothes are?” 

“I wasn’t staring.” Nick snorted and tightened the towel hanging low on his hips.

“Sure you weren’t.” Ellis shook his head and crossed the kitchen to rummage in one of the garbage bags. He pulled out some shirts and pants and laid them on the kitchen table. Nick picked up one of the plain blue shirts and threw it over his shoulder. Ellis was still rifling through the bag when Nick stepped up behind him to grab a pair of sweatpants out of his hands. Ellis turned to face him and was surprised to see how close Nick was to him. He gulped audibly and Nick smirked. 

“Thanks for the clothes, kid.” He winked and left the room, knowing he’d just made him blush.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“We’re back!” Nick looked up from his spot on the couch to see Rochelle and Coach entering the house with supplies in their arms. He put his book down and raised an eyebrow.

“What’d you find?” Rochelle tossed him a bottle of ibuprofen and he smiled.

“Thanks.” He took out three tablets and swallowed them without water. 

Coach put a huge crate on the coffee table and plopped down on the opposite side of the couch from Nick. Nick felt his ass lift off of the seat and he shot Coach a shocked look.

“Christ, Coach. Lay off the chocolate.” Coach glared at him.

“Shut up, Nick.” Rochelle warned. He waved her off and picked his book back up.

She rifled through the box on the coffee table and lifted a small black box out of the crate. She smiled and handed it to Nick. He looked at it confused.

“What the hell is this?” 

“It’s a DVD player. Have you never seen one before?” She asked sarcastically.

“Of course I have. I’ve just never seen one this small.” Ellis entered the room with a grin on his face.

“Yew found a DVD player? Awesome!” Nick handed the small device to Ellis who was staring at it in awe.

“We should watch something. Did you guys find any movies?” Rochelle nodded and reached back in the box and pulled out two movie cases. 

“Forrest Gump and Dog Soldiers.” Ellis read the titles with a frown.

“Dog Soldiers?” Nick asked.

“Yew heard of it before?” Ellis asked with a frown. Nick nodded and took the movie from him.

“This movie is awesome! We’re watching it.”  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Coach left during the movie, sometime after the squad was dropped in the Highlands. He declared that he wasn’t interested in a movie about “stupid soldiers fighting stupid werewolves” and left the room with a frown on his face.

Rochelle tried to pay attention but didn’t last much longer than Coach did. She kept dozing off before she finally declared the movie boring. She left to head off to the bedroom she’d claimed as her own, stifling yawns every few seconds.

Nick had his foot elevated on the coffee table and a beer in his hand. He wasn’t sure where they’d gotten the beer from but he wasn’t complaining. It tasted like piss-water but he just grateful that it got him buzzed.

Ellis was watching the screen with rapt attention. He kept mumbling about how awesome the movie was and barely touched his own beer. 

“If the dog dies, I ain’t gonna finish the movie.” Ellis mentioned after the barn blew up. 

“The dog doesn’t die. Don’t worry.” Nick said with a chuckle.

“And I’m ‘sposed to just believe yew? Yew’re probably lying.” Ellis said suspiciously.

“I would never lie.” 

“Liar.”  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nick awoke the next morning to sunlight streaming in his face. He opened one eye slowly and peered around the room. He remembered turning the TV off after the movie finished but he knew he’d fallen asleep shortly after.

He moved to sit up and realized that someone’s head was on his chest. He looked next to him and Ellis was stretched out against his right side, his face buried in Nick’s neck. Ellis’ hair was curling around his ears and Nick lifted a finger to move it out of his eyes. His hand was resting on Nick’s chest and he briefly contemplated taking his hand when Rochelle cooed from across the room. 

“Oh my, isn’t this precious?” Nick looked up to see Rochelle leaning in the doorway to the kitchen, a mug in her hand.

“Be quiet. You’ll wake him up.” He whispered, moving Ellis’ head off of his chest and onto the pillow next to him.

“Oops. Sorry!” She whispered loudly. 

Nick stood up and stretched. His joints cracked loudly and he winced when a pain shot down his side. He brushed past Rochelle to enter the kitchen. Coach was sitting at the table with toaster pastry in his hand and a mug in the other.

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty.” Nick rolled his eyes and crossed the room to grab a mug.

“Is there any coffee left?” Rochelle nodded and lifted the pot off of the stove. He poured some and added cream and sugar before sitting down at the table with his own breakfast.

“So you like cuddles?” Rochelle asked after a few minutes of silence.

“Fuck you.”  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ellis was still sleeping when Nick reentered the living room. Nick watched him for a minute before limping across the room to wake him. 

“Hey, Fireball. Wake up.” Ellis groaned and covered his face.

“I don’t wanna. It’s too early.” Nick rolled his eyes.

“It’s not too early. Now get up or I’m getting the ice water.” Ellis scrunched his face up.

“Don’t yew dare.” His voice was sleepy and he yawned.

“I’ll do it too. I could probably even get Coach to help.” Ellis groaned again and sat up, his eyes still closed.

“Open your damn eyes.” Ellis’ eyes opened slowly and he frowned.

“I slept on the couch. Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take the couch from yew.” Nick waved him off.

“We both fell asleep on the couch. I woke up to you drooling on me and trying to spoon me. It was disgusting.” Ellis covered his face in embarrassment.

“You seemed to enjoy though, Nick.” Rochelle piped up from behind him.

“You shut your whore mouth.” She smirked.

“It’s true, Ellis. He was brushing your hair back from your face and rubbing your back. I think Nick’s got a little crush on you.” Nick glared at her and tried not to blush like a teenage girl.

“Really?” Ellis asked, a mischievous grin on his face.

“Yes, really. It was so adorable.” Nick growled and limped out of the room, ignoring their laughter, and trying his hardest to not let them see the blush on his cheeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Rochelle


	9. Chapter 9

**Two weeks later**  
_____________________________________________________________

“Hey Coach.” Nick said as he limped into the kitchen.

“You still limping?” Coach asked, concern in his voice.

“Well, yeah. It’s only been three weeks. It takes a while to heal.” Coach frowned.

“I know it ain’t ‘sposed to be healed yet, dumbass. You just shouldn’t be limping like that anymore. You should be able to bear weight by now.” Nick looked down at his ankle and frowned.

“I’ll be fine, _mom_. Thanks for worrying about me.” Coach rolled his eyes and sipped at his water.

Nick searched through the cabinets for something to eat that wasn’t another toaster pastry. Half empty boxes of crackers, cereal, and oatmeal lined the shelves. He groaned and pulled out a packet of instant oatmeal and threw it onto the counter. He pulled a bowl out of the cabinet and poured the dry substance in the bowl and mixed it with water. He placed the bowl in the microwave and plopped down at the kitchen table.

Rochelle entered the kitchen a minute later, stifling a yawn. She poured herself a glass of water and pulled a toaster pastry out of the cabinet. She sat down in the seat next to Coach and opened her breakfast. Coach smiled at her and she grinned back.

“”Morning, Baby girl. You sleep well?” She nodded and took a bite out of her pastry.

“What? You two aren’t fighting anymore?” Nick asked sarcastically. Rochelle and Coach looked at him like he’d suddenly grown two heads. She put down her pastry and crossed her arms.

“Since when were Coach and I fighting?” He looked between the two of them to see if they were messing with him but he saw nothing but utter seriousness on their faces.

“You’ve got to be kidding me?” He asked.

“Son, are you feeling alright?” Coach asked.

“I feel fine. You guys seriously don’t remember fighting?” They shook their heads and he pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I’m going insane aren’t I?” He mumbled.  
\------------------------------------------------------

Nick found Ellis sitting on the couch with a comic book in his hands. His eyes were glued to the pages and he had a small smile on his face. Nick stepped forward to read the title of the book when Ellis glanced up at him.

“Hey, Nick. What’s up?” 

“You like comic books?” Ellis frowned and rolled his eyes.

“It ain’t a comic book. It’s a graphic novel.” 

“Graphic novel. My bad.” Nick said sarcastically.

“It’s really good. Yew wouldn’t know that though.” 

“What’s it about?” Ellis dog eared the page he was on and handed it to Nick.

Nick scanned the cover before the flipping the book over to read the back. He scanned the few paragraphs before he scoffed and handed the book back to Ellis. 

“Aliens? Really? You know they don’t exist, right?” 

“How do yew know? If we exist, why can’t they? It’s kinda dumb to think Earth’s the only planet with living creatures and stuff.” Nick pursed his lips and nodded.

“Touché.” Ellis grinned and opened the book again.

Nick sat down in the armchair next to the couch and closed his eyes. If anyone had told him the zombie apocalypse was this boring, he’d have never signed up. Not like he had much choice anyways. There was never anything to do. He knew that the television drained too much energy from the generator and there weren’t many interesting books to read.

“Hey, Ellis. Can I read that when you’re done?” Ellis looked up at him and raised an eyebrow.

“Yew wanna read this?” He asked. 

“Yes.” Ellis chuckled.

“I thought you didn’t wanna read about “dumb aliens”?” Nick rolled his eyes.

“Can I read it later or not?” 

“Yeah, I guess. I’m almost done anyways.” 

Nick nodded and leaned back in his seat. He kicked his feet up and started fiddling with the ring on his left hand. He was twisting it and didn’t notice that Ellis was watching him.

“Is that a wedding ring?” Nick shook his head.

“Hell no. I sold my ring after I divorced my wife. I don’t know what she did with hers but I made a pretty penny off of mine.” 

“I don’t get how people can go from loving someone to hating their guts. It don’t make any sense.” Ellis put his book aside.

“It’s weird. Trust me. I loved her. So damn much it was scary.” His face fell and Ellis leaned forward to pat his knee reassuringly.

“What’s her name?” 

“Laura Amato.” He clenched his jaw and curled his hand into a fist.

“Why’d yew stop loving her? She cheat or something?” Nick scoffed.

“No. She fell in love with someone else. I mean I can’t really judge her. She married me and I wasn’t the best husband. She was so damn demanding too. She wanted to keep her last name which I was fine with but she wanted to be in charge of everything. I could barely choose what I wanted to eat for lunch.” Ellis frowned.

“She doesn’t sound stubborn. She sounds controlling.” Nick looked up at Rochelle who’d entered the room.

“She was a little controlling, yeah. But she was Italian.” She shook her head.

“And? Your upbringing doesn’t dictate how you act. She was a controlling bitch. And she emotionally abused you by manipulating you.” Nick stood and glared at Rochelle.

“Anyone ever tell you that you need to keep your mouth shut?” She matched his glare and nodded.

“My whole damn life. And I’m not gonna listen to another “holier-than-thou” white asshole like you.” She stormed out of the room and Nick grumbled under his breath.

“She does sound like a bitch, Nick.” Ellis piped.

“Shut up, Cletus.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nick's wife was emotionally abusive?! Yeah I went there. I figured we know nothing about her so I could make her as much of a bitch as I wanted to. Also, what's up with Nick guys? What's up with everything changing?


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHHHHH!! I'm not dead! And I actually updated! So sorry about the lack of updates. But I lost wifi last month so I'm updating this on my phone using Xfinity wifi lol. But I hope you enjoyed the

"Come on, Nick. WAKE UP!" Nick shot up and panted heavily. He looked around the dark living room and frowned. The room was empty and the entire house was silent.

 

"Ellis?" He called out softly. He was answered with deafening silence and he sighed. He rubbed a hand across his face and sighed. 

 

"Nick? Are yew okay?" He glanced up and Ellis was leaning against the side of the couch.

 

"Where the hell did you come from?" Ellis frowned and sat on the arm of the couch.

 

"My room. I was sleeping and I heard yew call my name." Nick groaned and shook his head.

 

"Just go back to sleep, Fireball. I just had a dream." Ellis frowned and crossed the room to turn on the small solar lantern. Nick squinted at the sudden flood of light that filled the room.

 

"Yew've been acting really weird lately. Are yew okay?" 

 

"I'm fine." Ellis raised his eyebrow and Nick glared at him. 

 

"Sure yew are." Nick grit his teeth and pinched the bridge of his nose.

 

"There's just been some weird crap happening. I've been seeing shit and hearing shit. I feel like I'm going insane." 

 

"Like what?" Nick shrugged.

 

"I don't know. Changing pictures, hearing voices, there are literally no zombies or animals in this town. That's weird right? Plus my bruises are fading and I'm healing but it still feels like it did when I first got hurt. I feel like I'm insane." Ellis frowned and crossed his arms.

 

"That is weird.

"I hate this damn apocalypse." Ellis chuckled and crossed the room to sit on the sofa next to Nick. 

 

"Yew ain't the only one. I really want a Bud Lite and to sit down and watch WWE like I used to." Nick snorted.

 

"That sounds great and I don't even like light beer or wrestling. I just like the idea of relaxing without worrying about getting killed. Not like I could do that before the damn zombies showed up." Ellis smiled.

 

"What're yew gonna do after the apocalypse?"

 

"After? There is no "after", kid. Have you never seen a zombie movie?" Ellis shrugged.

 

"I like thinking good thoughts. Not bad ones. I don't like the idea being stuck in this shit for the rest of my life. I'm only 26, Nick. I got shit I wanna do." 

 

"So do I. I really want to go to Bora Bora. Or Thailand." 

 

"Doesn't Thailand have all those prostitutes?" Nick chuckled.

 

"Yeah but that's not why I want to go. I just want to travel. Maybe even meet someone nice who is nothing like my ex wife." 

 

"Well I'm sure yew'll meet a nice prostitute in Thailand." 

 

"Hey don't knock sex workers. Their work is a craft." Ellis rolled his eyes.

 

"I would have liked to meet someone too. I wanted to get married before I was 30." 

 

"Who knows? Maybe you'll meet a nice spitter. Have some jockey babies." Ellis shoved Nick.

 

"Gross. I ain't ever gonna get that image out of my brain." 

 

"You're welcome." Nick said with a grin. Ellis moved to shove him again but Nick grabbed his arms and pinned them at his sides. 

 

Ellis wriggled and tried escape from Nick''s grip but he was stuck. He frowned and wriggled once more before giving up. 

 

"I ain't gonna hit yew again. Can yew let me go?" Nick smiled and released Ellis's arms.

 

"Yew're a dick." Ellis mumbled affectionately.

 

"Well so are you." Ellis gaped.

 

"I ain't a dick. I'm real nice. Probaby the nicest person you've ever met. I've never done a bad thing in my life. Well except for the time Keith and I were at the park and -" He was cut off by Nick pressing his lips to his. 

 

Ellis sighed and slipped his hand around Nick's neck and kissed him back. Nick inhaled sharply and pulled away from Ellis.

 

"Um...what was that for?" Ellis asked, a shocked look on his face. 

 

"You talk too much." Ellis smirked and Nick pulled Ellis's mouth back to his.  
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rochelle rubbed her eyes and trudged down the hallway. She entered the living room and paused in the doorway. 

Ellis and Nick were stretched out across the sofa with their limbs intertwined. She moved close to look at the two of them and her eyebrows shot up at the sight of the purple marks on both of their necks.

 

"Well I'll be damned." She mumbled before continuing towards the kitchen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THEY KISSED?!?!? Finally! Only took ten chapters lol


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! I updated!

I'm gonna throw up.” Rochelle covered her eyes and gagged.

 

“Stop being a drama queen.” Nick grumbled. He popped an apple slice in his mouth and glared at her.

 

“But all you two do is kiss now. It's gross.” Ellis frowned.

 

“No we don't. We kissed twice. That's it.” 

 

“Still. The last the thing the apocalypse needs is a budding romance.” Coach looked up from his book.

 

“Actually I think that's exactly what the apocalypse needs, baby. It shows that there is still some love on this planet.” Nick’s eyes widened.

 

“Whoa, Coach. I wouldn't be using the “L” word yet. We barely know each other.” 

 

“Well it only takes a man two weeks to fall in love.” Rochelle said with a mischievous grin. 

 

“Please don't add fuel to the fire.” Nick grumbled. Ellis grinned and rested his chin on Nick’s shoulder. 

 

“They're tryin’ to annoy yew. Just ignore ‘em.” 

 

“Trust me, I'm trying.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------

Nick was sitting on the corner of Coach’s  bed while the older man removed the bandages wrapped around his torso. His bruises and cuts had all faded away and his ribs no longer jutted out under his skin at awkward angles. 

 

Coach peeled off the last bandage and stepped back to look at Nick’s chest and stomach. He nodded and smiled before tossing Nick his shirt.

 

“You’re practically as good as new, son.” Nick pulled his shirt over his head and grimaced.

 

“I don't feel like it. I feel exactly the same as I did the day that smoker fucked me up.” 

 

“Well I ain't a doctor so I have no idea why you're still aching. Just keep taking that aspirin Rochelle got you.”

 

“She got me ibuprofen not aspirin.” Coach rolled his eyes.

 

“I don't care. Just keep taking it. Now get out of my room and go get some sleep.” Nick smiled and limped his way out of the older man’s bedroom.

 

He made his way to the living room and laid down on the couch. He rolled onto his stomach and buried his face in his pillow. 

 

“Daddy?” Nick lifted his head and looked around the room.

 

“Hello?” He asked quietly.

 

“Daddy?” He sat up and looked around the room again.

 

“Is someone there?” He heard the crackle of electricity before a girl in a purple nightgown appeared in front of him.

 

He jumped up and shouted out in surprise. The girl's skin was black and peeling and her eyes were glowing. She cocked her head.

 

“I thought you loved me, daddy?” He froze and his eyes widened.

 

“Wendy?” Her lip trembled and she walked towards him.

 

“Why did you let me die?” Nick fell to his knees in front of her and grabbed her small hand.

 

“It wasn't my fault, baby. The door wouldn't open. I tried so hard to get you out.” She glared at him and slapped him across the face.

 

“You never loved me. You only cared about yourself. You're a selfish asshole. I hope you burn like I did.” She disappeared and Nick collapsed on the floor. 

 

He laid there sobbing for several minutes. His eyes and face were swollen from crying and his throat ached.

 

“Nick?” He looked up and saw his ex-wife standing over him.

 

“Laura?” She kneeled and lifted his chin.

 

“What's wrong, babe?” He shook his head and pulled away from her.

 

“You're not real.” She smiled softly.

 

“I'm as real as ever, Nick.” His lip trembled.

 

“How are you here?  _ Why _ are you here?” She frowned. 

 

“Because you need to wake up.”

 

Nick gasped and sat up from the couch. The morning sunlight was streaming through the window and he could hear someone moving around in the kitchen. 

 

He stood from the couch and stretched. He sauntered into the kitchen and saw Ellis standing over the coffee maker pouring grounds into the filter. Nick leaned against the counter and rubbed his eyes. Ellis turned to look at him and grinned. 

 

“Mornin’ sleepyhead.” 

 

“Morning.” He mumbled.

 

“Yew sleep alright?” Nick shook his head.

 

“I slept but it wasn't alright.” Ellis started the coffee and walked over to Nick.

 

“Are yew ok?” He nodded and kissed Ellis on his forehead.

 

“I'm fine. It was just a nightmare.” 

  
_ I hope _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a warning, shit is about to get real. 
> 
> Only two more chapters guys!
> 
>  
> 
> There will be a sequel so don't worry


	12. Chapter 12

2 weeks later  
\----------------------  
Nick was sitting at the kitchen table, his leg was bouncing and his eyes were closed tightly. Ellis was sitting next to him, chatting away with Rochelle and Coach. Nick had tuned him out five minutes earlier. It had become impossible to focus on anything after Laura and Wendy had begun tormenting him. 

“Nick, yew ok?” He glanced up and nodded.

“Yeah, I'm fine.” Rochelle arched an eyebrow. 

“Are you sure, Nick? You haven't been acting right these past few weeks.” Nick squeezed his eyes shut and nodded.

“I'm fine! Just please stop asking!” He snapped. 

“We're just worried. No need to get a temper, son.” Coach said softly. Nick stood and cleared his throat. 

“Just please leave me alone.”  
\-------------------------------------------------------------  
Nick sat on the bathroom floor, his hands over his ears and he was rocking back and forth.

“Nick, you're never gonna escape us. We're with you forever. That's not so bad. You love both of us.” Laura said sweetly, her hand on his knee.

“I love Wendy. But not you. Not anymore.” He uncovered his ears and glanced up at her. She narrowed her eyes.

“You're lying. You'll love me forever.” He shook his head furiously.

“No. I won't. I can't.” She slapped him across the face and he flinched.

“I HATE YOU!” She vanished in front of him and he sighed in relief. 

“Pissed her off, huh?” He looked up again and frowned. 

A young kid was standing in front of him. His long black hair was pulled back into a ponytail and his t-shirt was covered in blood.

“I know you.” The kid grinned and hopped up onto the counter.

“Well you should. You killed me, remember?” Nick’s face crumpled and he covered his eyes.

“Oh God. Not you too.” The kid chuckled.

“Yeah me too. How've you been, Nick? You're dealing with the apocalypse pretty well. And the whole hillbilly love-hate thing.” Nick looked up at him and glared.

“Leave him out of this.” The kid smirked and raised his hands in mock surrender.

“Ok. Let's talk about something else. How about the time you shot me in the chest? Remember that glorious day?”

“I'll never forget it. It was the biggest mistake of my life.” The kid grinned.

“Well I was the one who walked into the middle of a mafia shootout. Although you guys were the ones shooting in a school zone.” 

“I'm so sorry. I did stupid things when I was a kid. It was an accident.” The boy jumped off the counter and crouched in front of Nick.

“Fuck you, Nick. You're a fucking murderer. You killed your daughter and me. I'm sure there's many more. Because you're scum.” The boy disappeared and Nick immediately burst into tears.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------  
Nick wasn't sure how long he was on the bathroom floor before he heard the door open. He looked up and Ellis stood in the doorway with a shocked look on his face.

“Nick, what happened?” He knelt in front of him and lifted Nick’s chin up. 

“I'm sorry.” Ellis furrowed his brow.

“Sorry for what?”

“It was an accident. I didn't mean to kill them.”  
“Kill who?” 

“Wendy. And the boy.” Ellis frowned.

“Who's Wendy?” Nick looked up, tears streaming down his face.

“My daughter.”  
\-------------------------------------------------------------  
“So you've been seeing people for two weeks and you didn't tell us?” Rochelle asked softly.

“I've been seeing and hearing things longer than that. For about 6 weeks. The people didn't show up until two weeks ago.” Coach raised his brow.

“And who have you been seeing? Besides your daughter.” 

“My ex-wife and...a kid that I shot.” Rochelle gasped.

“You shot a kid?” 

“It was an accident! I didn't mean to.” Ellis looked worried.

“That ain't our concern. What else yew been seeing?” Nick shrugged.

“I've been hearing voices and seeing things change. And I'm the only one who seems to think it's strange that there aren't any zombies here. Or animals, bugs, birds, anything!” Rochelle frowned.

“He's right. It's like a dead zone here.” She said gravely. 

“How come we didn't notice that?” Coach asked.

“I think we were focused on saving our asses. And getting Nick patched up. ” Ellis mumbled, grabbing Nick’s hand under the table. 

“Something is wrong. I don't know what but something is definitely wrong.” Nick said. Rochelle looked around the room.

“Do you think we're being watched? Like this is some sort of experiment the government has constructed?” Coach shrugged.

“I hope not. If it is, we're screwed.” 

“Well that's not reassuring.” Nick said.

“That still don't explain why Nick is seeing shit?” He squeezed Nick’s hand and frowned. Nick smiled at Ellis and leaned over to kiss his cheek.

“I might just be crazy. It wouldn't surprise me if I was.” 

“Yew ain't crazy, alright? Something weird is going on.”

“And we're going to figure out what. Okay?” Rochelle asked with a soft smile. Nick nodded.

“Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any theories? Only one more chapter left!


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AHHHHH! THE LAST CHAPTER! ASDFGHJKLZXNCNFKSKSLSLSLDK!!!!!!!

“I can still sleep on the couch. You know that right?” Ellis waved him off and pulled the blanket back on his bed.

“I'm sleeping in a queen sized. There's room for yew too.” He kicked his boots off and pulled his shirt over his head. He burrowed under the blanket and looked over at Nick.

“So are yew gonna sleep standin’ up? Or are yew gonna lay down?” Nick hesitated before sitting in the edge of the bed to pull his shoes off. He sat there for a moment before clearing his throat.

“Why?” Ellis propped himself up on his elbow.

“Why what?”

“Why don't you hate me? Why aren't you scared of me?” Ellis frowned. 

“Yew don't scare me. Yew make me worried and scared for yew. But I ain't scared of yew. And I don't think I could ever hate yew.” Nick looked at his hands and scoffed.

“Why can't you hate me?” 

“I just can't.” Nick clenched his jaw.

“Why not?!” Ellis grew silent. 

“Because I care about yew. A lot, yew idiot. Now go to sleep.” He rolled over and pulled the blanket back over his shoulder. 

Nick kicked his shoes away and peeled his shirt off. He unbuttoned his pants and pulled them off. 

He lifted the blanket up and slid under the covers. Ellis still had his back to him so he just laid on his back and stared up at the ceiling.

“So now you're a faggot?” He looked over and saw Laura standing at the foot of the bed, her arms crossed and a frown on her face. He rolled over and ignored her. 

“And now you're ignoring me. This is why I left you. You're so selfish.” 

“Shut up.” He hissed. Ellis shifted and looked over at him. 

“I didn't say nothing.” He squeezed his eyes shut.

“Not you.” Ellis looked around the room.

“Who? Wendy?”

“It's Laura this time.” Ellis sat up. He grabbed Nick's hand and frowned.

“What's she saying?” Nick shook his head and sat up.

“Insulting me. That's all they ever do.” 

“What do they say?” 

“Laura calls me faggot and child killer. Wendy and the kid call me a murderer and a loser.” Ellis shook his head and sighed.

“I can't believe this shit is happening. And nobody can even help. Yew ain’t getting better and we have no clue why yew keep seeing...them.” Nick bit his lip.

“I know why I'm seeing them. I'm insane.” 

“Yew ain't insane, Nick.” 

“Then why am I seeing dead people? I don't remember turning into Haley Joel Osment!” Ellis frowned.

“This ain't something you should be joking about, Nick.” 

“I'm not joking. I feel fucking crazy, El. Like there's a bomb in my head and it'll detonate at any second. And it keeps getting worse. I'm not going to survive this damn apocalypse at this rate.”  
\-------------------------------------------------

One week later  
\-----------------------

The four survivors were sitting around the kitchen table, their dinners in front of them. Rochelle was trying to fix a radio she had found. She cursed under her breath every few seconds whenever she hit another dead end with the dried wires in the back of the small device.

Ellis had gotten his hands on a Christopher Pike novel and he hadn't put it down in two days. Coach had done the same thing with a sports history book.

Nick was the only one sitting at the table not doing anything. He picked at his dinner quietly and tried not to move too much and hurt his ribs.

“So how you feelin’?” Nick looked up from his food and raised an eyebrow.

“You worried about me, Coach?” The older man nodded.

“You know I am, son.” Nick shrugged.

“I haven't seen anything or anyone in a week. My ribs and ankle still hurt like a son of a bitch though. So it's been okay.” Coach smiled.

“Things are starting to look up a little.” Ellis said with a smile. 

“Don't jinx him, honey. We haven't had the best of luck.” Rochelle said without looking up from the radio.

“I ain't jinxing him. I'm just stating a fact.” He grumbled. Nick kicked him lightly under the table and Ellis squinted at him and kicked him back . 

“Quit playing footsie.” Coach said with a smile. 

“We ain't playin’ footsie. He kicked me and I kicked him back.” Rochelle snorted.

“That's the definition of footsie, Ellis.” 

She redid the screws on the back of the radio and turned it around to face her. Nick raised an eyebrow and watched her fiddle with the knobs. There was a crackle and she cheered.

“Yew got it working!” 

“Now I've just gotta find a station that's still active.” She cocked her head and started turning the station knob slowly.

The group listened with her, waiting to hear anything other than radio silence. They only heard crackling until Nick started to hear very faint voices. 

“Do you hear that?” Nick asked, excitedly. The other shook their heads and listened.

“What do you hear?” Rochelle asked.

“Voices. On the radio. Not in my head.” She stopped turning the knob and listened.

“...Can't just leave...he'll die…..he's our friend….it's murder…..one more day.” Nick froze.

“What the hell?” Rochelle raised an eyebrow.

“I don't hear anything.” She said.

“I heard people talking about leaving someone behind to die.” Ellis frowned.

“What? Are yew sure yew heard that in the radio? And not…” He trailed off and Nick grimaced.

“I know what I heard Ellis.” He stood from the table and grabbed the radio. He exited the kitchen leaving the others staring at him in despair.  
\--------------------------------------------------------  
Nick ignored Ellis when he entered the bedroom a few minutes later. He had his ear to the radio and was intently listening to the station for anymore voices.

“I think I jinxed yew.” Nick looked up from the radio.

“What?” Ellis sat down on the bed next to Nick and frowned. 

“When I said things were getting better. I think I jinxed you like Ro said.” Nick scoffed.

“I'm not hearing things, Fireball. There were voices. It could've been radio interference from someone’s walkie talkies but I know what I heard.” Ellis bit his lip.

“Yew're crazy.” Nick looked at him and froze.

“What?” 

“Yew heard me, Nick. Yew’re crazy. Batshit insane actually. I don't even know why I'm with yew.” Nick put the radio down and stared at Ellis.

“Why are you saying that? What's going on?” His lip quivered and Ellis sneered at him. 

“Yew know why I'm saying it. Yew just can't stand to hear the facts.” He stood from the bed and crossed the room to look out the window. Nick stood up from the bed.

“You're not real.” Ellis looked back at him. 

“Well yew got me there.” Nick shook his head.

“Not again.”

“Oh calm down. If yew can handle yer dead kid, yew can handle yer boyfriend.” Nick walked to the door and turned the knob. The door opened but the hallway had disappeared and in its place was a black abyss. 

“What's happening?” He turned back to face Not-Ellis.

“Yew’ve reached the end. Yew're done.” 

“Am I dying?” Not-Ellis laughed.

“Unfortunately, no. But yew're gonna wish yew had real soon.” 

“What does that mean?” Not-Ellis smirked.

“Bye Nick.” He vanished and Nick was left standing alone in the room.

There was a crack of thunder outside and he rushed to the window to look out. Rain was pouring down and it was jet black outside. He stared out the window intently. There was a flash of lightning suddenly and he gasped.

The entire street, front lawn, and the lawns across the street were covered with zombies. They were all standing completely still and staring up at the window he was looking out of.

He pulled the curtains shut and backed away from the window until his knees hit the bed. He fell on the bed and quickly scrambled to the head of the bed.

“It's all over, daddy.” He looked up and Wendy was standing next to him. 

Instead of the usual black, burnt skin he saw her with, her curly brown hair was framing her face and her skin was creamy and flawless. There was a flush in her cheeks and she had a soft smile on her face.

“Wendy? You look…” She took his hand.

“I know. It's time to go, daddy.”

“Go where?” She smiled wider.

“Where you belong.” 

“Am I dead?” She shook her head.

“Just follow me.” She pulled in his hand and he stood from the bed. She walked him over to the bedroom door and gestured for him to open it.

“But…” 

“I know. Open it anyways.” He turned the knob and was greeted by the same black abyss from before.

“Yew ready?” He looked over and Wendy had disappeared and instead Ellis was standing next to him gripping his hand.

“I have to jump.” It wasn't a question but Ellis nodded anyways. 

“Are you coming with?” Ellis frowned and shook his head.

“Yew have to do this alone. But I'll be there on the other side.” Nick nodded and Ellis pulled him towards him. He pulled Nick's mouth to his and gave him a soft kiss.

“I love yew.” Nick smiled.

“You too.” He turned back to the abyss and closed his eyes before jumping.  
\--------------------------------------------------------

Nick felt a deep pain and suddenly a strong smell of death assaulted his nose. He grimaced and groaned. 

“NICK!” He heard Ellis shout but he still couldn't open his eyes. 

“Nick can you hear me?” He heard Rochelle’s voice and he groaned again. 

He slowly opened his eyes and immediately saw a dimly lit room and Ellis kneeling over him.

“El?” Ellis nodded and smiled.

“How do yew feel?” Nick winced.

“Like shit. What happened?” Rochelle sighed.

“The helicopter crashed. You've been unconscious for two days. And your ribs and ankle are fucked up pretty badly.” Nick frowned.

“What helicopter?” 

“The one that picked us up at the bridge. Remember?” Ellis asked.

Nick froze and pushed himself up. His ribs pinched but he ignored the pain. 

“Nick you should lay down.” Rochelle said.

He ignored her and pulled himself to his feet. He dragged himself over to the small window in the room, ignoring his dizziness and nausea. 

He looked out the window and saw a treeline. The helicopter was laying on its side, completely totaled. There was still smoke coming from it and he could see two graves several yards away from the helicopter.

“Coach.” He looked back at them and they looked down.

“He didn't survive the crash. Neither did the pilot. We buried them yesterday.” Rochelle said solemnly. 

A million thoughts rushed through his head and he fell to the ground. Rochelle and Ellis rushed to his side. He felt a wave of nausea and he covered his mouth. 

“Get him a bucket Ellis.” Ellis ran around the corner and came back with a metal mop bucket. He passed it to Nick quickly.

Nick heaved and threw up pure bile. It burned his throat and mouth. His eyes were watering and he pushed the bucket away.

“Oh God.” 

“I know this is probably really shocking and upsetting but you need to stay calm.” Nick looked up at Rochelle and shook his head. Ellis was standing behind her, his arms crossed and a worried look on his face.

“I can't stay calm.” Ellis crouched down next to Rochelle and stared at Nick.

“Why?” Nick looked at him and his face crumpled.

“Because it was a dream.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY SHIT! This is the last chapter of Eyes Wide Shut. It's been a wild 7 months folks. I really hope you liked the story, especially the final chapter. Also feel free to tell me what you thought of the story as a whole. And if you think it needs a sequel ;)


End file.
